Backed by Rocket Internet, Tripda says it is a social, economical, safe, green alternative to bus, rail, even short air transportation.

Online carpooling marketplace Tripda, which looks to connect people who need rides with drivers who have empty car seats on long trips, has been launched in India.

After Brazil, USA, Argentina, Colombia, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines, Tripda is now taking on the Indian market.

Passengers and drivers can connect through Tripda’s website and mobile app platforms, available for both iOS and Android, and mutually filter travel partners taking similar journeys according to their personal preferences.

Tripda verifies drivers and passengers in multiple ways and runs checks to ensure their privacy and security.

The platform fills an important gap in the long-distance travel market and provides an alternative to buses, trains and short flights.

Currently a free platform, Tripda does not charge its users any fees or commissions currently for using the platform.

Tripda banks on the ‘sharing economy’ that is rising today and can be seen in the form of rooms, cars to everyday services.

Pedro Meduna, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Tripda.in said, “Tripda is exciting because it is part of a broader movement of sharing knowledge, increasing opportunity and reducing costs.”

Seeing India as one of their most important geographies, Nitish Bhushan, Country Manager, said, “Carpooling is already taking place in an unstructured way – the next step is to make it organized. We are here to make long-distance carpooling a mainstream method of transportation.”